Curt B

As long as I’m singing the book’s praises, I’ve already put it to use. I’m working on my 1/48 Kitty Hawk AH-1Z, and I’ve been able to add some details to the tail rotor. The styrene molding process has its limitations, and having a reference such as this helps a great deal in creating the ‘busy-ness’ of the rotor hub, and I’ll do the same to the main rotor. I’ve been working on the battery/avionics bay also, and I’m thrilled! My abilities to create such small items have been challenged to the max, but it is wonderful to have photos of the details to work toward!

You are MOST welcome, sir!! It certainly would be shame if people wanted a great reference on these machines for modeling, and they find out that they can’t get one any longer!! It sounds like a case of: If you want one of these. don’t wait!

Thanks, Dave. I probably should’ve looked at other stores to see if they were about double also, before asking my question.

I just saw that Sprue Brothers has the 1/48 ICM Blackhawk helicopter kit, the Gothic Serpent version, for sale, with a price over TWICE that of their other 1/48 ICM Blackhawk kits. What is up with that? Is there twice the plastic in that kit? Huge amounts of 3D printed parts not offered in the other kits? Or is it pure and simple greed, knowing many folks will want those particular helicopters? I was going to get that kit when it was available from a US shop, but not now...unless there's good justification such that I won't feel really taken advantage of. Anyone know?

Hey all, I don’t know if this has been mentioned in this section of the forum before, but I just got a fabulous book by CAVU Publications on the AH-1W/Z Cobra attack helicopters. If any of you are working on a Cobra or our considering getting and working on a Cobra, you need this book. Note: I have nothing to do with the publisher or the author, just a super happy book owner!!

Sorry All…answered my own question…thanks.

Gotcha!!! Thanks for the clarification. You may well be correct, but it's amazing how many manufacturers, in particular over the last few years, have jumped on creating new mold kits of subjects that other manufacturers have just done. In armor, I'm thinking of the huge number of M1A1/2 Abrams kits that multiple manufacturers jumped on producing, plus at least 3 (Tamiya, RFM, Border) doing Leopard 2A7 variants. How about the 1/35 scale Apache, and the 1/48 and 1/35 AH-1Z? And while I can't think of other specifics right now, I know there have been others. We can certainly h

My experience with MCC seats has been great! I can VERY highly recommend them! Frankly, they are the best aftermarket seats I’ve used, with the possible exception of Sparkit Model seats, of which I’ve only seen photos, and which have a limited selection of 1/48 seats for the subjects that interest me. I’m thinking that the Sparkit seats are at the very pinnacle of accuracy and detail, though!!

Hey Ben, I’ve been thinking about your comment regarding Trumpeter poisoning the F-100 well. What exactly you mean by that??

Thanks for the info, Ben!

This is a great thread, albeit older and similar to other such threads. I haven’t looked at all the posts, but I’ll give you my thoughts even if they may be repeats of other’s desires… 1. An ultra-detailed, new mold, 1/48 F-86F, thoroughly researched and absolutely accurate, with all control surfaces pose-able. Preferably by Tamiya, GWH, or Meng. I have the newish 1/48 Airfix F-86F, and it’s a good start, but it needs more. 2. A new mold 1/48 F-105 Thunderchief, whatever variant was most used in Vietnam, with every possible weapon load. 3. Like 2., a new mold 1/48 F-1

I agree!! I have the Meng kit (not yet built), but glad to hear that the fit is, for the most part, great. Yes, I understand the difference in variant, but I would need to hear about outstanding fit to consider a Trumpeter version.

Hey all, I am going to be working on my AMK MiG –31 soon, and I’m wondering if there is any special weathering I should consider for this type of aircraft. Is there more of a tendency to see rust on these planes as opposed to US aircraft? I am planning on doing appreciating and then painting with MRP Traffic Gray, which seems to be a common color that folks use for this plane. Just looking to see if anybody has anything unusual that I might consider. Thanks for any thoughts.

Thank you, guys!

Beautiful Phantom! My only comment is that the landing gear and associated wheel wells could use a touch of weathering.

Moderators, please lock this thread. I was foolish to think, when I started it, that it could/would remain focused. My apologies to anyone who is/was offended by the ensuing discussion…

Well, you’ve stated the obvious, but that’s fine. The point I was trying to make when I started this thread was more specific on which products might be most affected. With the government oscillations as they are, that may be an impossible task.

Thanks! I think those stripes enhance any aircraft they are on, but clearly, some more than others.

Great airplane! I love the 727, and you did a wonderful job on yours! The wing details are fantastic!

Thank you, sir! Yes, combat pictures are great and useful, for sure! In addition, I’d like a book that focuses on details of the plane, from a modeler’s perspective, showing details that a modeler could duplicate during model builds.

Hi All, This may have been asked previously, but I couldn’t find anything…. What is the best book about the F-86, preferably focusing on the later variants like the F-86F? What I really want is a book that has the best detail photographs.

Interesting. I wonder if that is a result of the tariffs or some other factor. Regardless, I just today got my GWH A-10C Blacksnake kit which I bought from an EBay seller from China (I hadn't seen this particular kit available here in the US), and I'm glad it's in my hot little hands.

Honesty, I had no idea where this thread would go when I started it. Like many of you, I already have 10x as many kits as I could reasonably build in my remaining lifetime, but that still doesn’t mean I don’t want to get the latest and greatest kit(s) that continue to come out, especially on subjects that I find interesting and may not have had an appropriate plastic version previously available. I’m hoping that even the Chinese manufacturers won’t be significantly impacted, because I’ll still buy, as long as the prices don’t hit the stratosphere. I’m not interested in letting the tariffs af

Hey All, I REALLY didn’t want this to be political. I guess I was too stupid to think it could remain that way. Suggest locking the thread before it gets ugly and my sincere apologies for starting this without thinking hard enough about the likely path forward…

With the new tariffs being imposed by the US government, how badly will our hobby be affected? Considering a large majority of all our hobby products come from China, there’s no doubt there will be a significant impact. Is it time to buy like crazy to stock up? (Of course, this is just a point for the US members of this forum…)